Richa Chadha opens up about working in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Netflix show Heeramandi
Richa Chadha has played more ‘badasses’ than one can count on their hand. From Bholi Punjaban of Fukrey to Madam Chief Minister, she has played strong-willed women in various avatars. Perhaps that is why she says she jumped at a chance to play Rajjo in Heeramandi, a tragic character that has absolutely no agency. In a candid chat with DNA, the actress opens up about reuniting with Sanjay Leela Bhansali and why Rajjo is special for her.
Heeramandi, Bhansali’s magnum opus, is based on the eponymous district from Lahore, where courtesans ruled in undivided India. The story of the series takes place pre-partition with Richa’s Lajjo one of the courtesans in the kotha of Mallikajaan (Manisha Koirala), the uncrowned queen of Heeramandi.
Talking about playing Rajjo, Richa says, “I was greedy for this character because in several of my previous interviews, I have only been asked ‘you only do empowered roles’ as if it’s a problem. They talk about Madam Chief Minister or Fukrey and how I always play outspoken badasses. I did want to play a woman who has little or no agency. That is also a facet of being a woman, particularly a woman trapped in this cage.”
The melancholy in Rajjo’s character was ‘fun’ to bring out, says Richa, before clarifying that the fun was more about the challenge of doing such a complex role. “It was very fun for me to get into that mindset. Not that I mean that it was a fun character, but it was very enlightening to explore that. Even my dance piece is so emotive and heartbreaking, which was quite an experience,” she says.
Richa’s last outing was Fukrey 3, an out-and-out comedy and quite a contrast from the sombre and dark setting of Heeramandi. “I do find the contrast quite challenging,” says Richa. But more than that, the actress says the real challenge for her was the period setting. She explains, “Any kind of period performance, which requires you to go to the past, needs a certain amount of stillness – theheraav. That is something a lot of us are lacking right now. That was quite challenging.”
Heeramandi also stars Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Sharmin Sehgal, Aditi Rao Hydari, and Sanjeeda Sheikh. The OTT debut of Sanjay Leela Bhansali, it will stream on Netflix from May 1.
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 "Richa Chadha in Heeramandi")
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